Room air conditioning unit



Feb. 22, 1944. Q; HOLM-HANSEN ROOM'AIR CONDITIONING UNI'I Filed Dec. 18; 1941 Fianrwsen,

His Attorney.

The lower clamping hub ii is provided with a suitable axial bore for receiving the upwardly extending shaft ll of the vertically mounted electric driving motor it with the hub it held in posltion on the shaft by means of the set screw it. The electric driving motor I8 preferably is supported upon a resilient vibration absorbing pad 20 which rests upon the internally raised platformll formed in the bottom of the bowl-like housing 22 which surrounds the driving motor l8. This bowl-like housing 22 is provided with a specially formed outwardly extending concave rim 23 with the inner-edge thereof joined to the top of the bowl-like housing 22 to form a circular rillie 24 disposed just below and closely adjacent to the periphery of the disk it. The driving motor I8 is held vertically within the housing 22 by means of the three radially extending braces 26 so as to maintain the shaft ll concentric with the circular riiile 24.

The bottom part of the bowl-like housing 22 preferably is of cylindrical form to telescope inside of the upper end of the cylindrical water tank 21 which is provided with an enlarged circular base 28 carrying the widely spaced apart mounting feet 29 to insure stability. A sleeve 38 extending downwardly from the raised platform 2i] carries the bearing M for the drive shaft 32 which is connected by the coupling 35 to the lower end of the shaft ii of the driving motor ill. This drive shaft 32 extends through a guiding diaphragm 3d and is connected by means of the flexible coupling 35 to drive the shaft 36 carrying the impeller ii of the centrifugal pump 3t which is mounted in the bottom of the water tank 27 by means of the screws at.

The outlet of the water pump 3% is connected to the pipe it which extends upwardly inside of the tank 2'3 to join-with the humidifying water supply pipe 42. Pipe t2 passes outwardly through a suitable opening formed below the circular riflie 24 in the housing 22 and is then bent over the upper edge of the concave rim 2% and provided with a discharge spout (33 located directly above the supply water well at formed axially in the upper disk clamping hub it. In this way water is pumped from the bottom of the tank 2i and supplied to the water well M from which it is absorbed into the porous spinner disk it.

In operation, an adequate supply of water is poured into the housing 22 and passes through the openings 45 formed in the bottom of the housing 22 to fill the tank 21 to a suitable height as indicated by the dotted line at. The electric driving motor it is connected to a suitable electric supply circuit through the flexible lead at and the plug 48 so as to drive the spinner disk it and the pump 38 at a relatively high speed. The rotation of the spinner disk in at relatively high speed discharges the air inside the disk from the periphery of the disk due to centrifugal action. This reduces the air pressure inside the disk below atmospheric so that air will flow into both sides of the disk as indicated diagrammatically by the arrows in Fig. 3. The resulting centrifugal air fiow through the disk iii becomes progressively stronger towards the periphery of the disk due to the progressively enlarged circular crosssectional area of the disk as well as the increased centrifugal action as the air approaches the periphery. In this way the air is passed centrifugally through the disk and thereby subthe air flows'upwardly in an expanding conical path towards the ceiling and a counterfiow of air downwardly towards the axis of the disk it is induced.

A plurality of restricted air inlet openings 5U preferably are formed in the walls of the tank 21 to permit an additional flow of air into the tank to pass upwardly through the openings 45 in the bottom of thehousing 22 around the motor i8 and into the lower side of the spinner disk Ill. This additional flow of air serves to further increase the dissipation of water into the air as well as to cool the motor l8 and to maintain the proper high velocity centrifugal fiow of air from. the periphery of the disk Hi. An inverted conical re-entrant air circulation is thus produced in the room by the high speed operation of the horizontal spinner disk ill with practically no noise and without the occupants being subject to objectionably strong air currents or drafts. Such a forced air circulation tends to induce a generally diffused circulation of the air throughout the room. that serves to reduce the temperature difierential at the ceiling and also imparts more livable characteristics to the air in the room.

The operation of the pump 38 raises the water from the bottom of the tank N to discharge in a small stream from the spout 33 into the water well 44 on the upper side of the horizontal spinning disk Ill. The Water is absorbed from the Well 64 into the central part of the spinner disk ill and by centrifugal action is intimately mixed with the air flowin inside of the disk and projected along with the air from the periphery thereof,' The finer particles of water are carried be vaporized and dissipated therein. By a combination of capillary and centrifugal action, all parts of the disk iii are maintained wetted so as to diffuse the maximum amount of water into the air. The excess water is discharged in larger particles that are intercepted by the concav rim 23 and thereby.form an additional wetted surface from which an additional amount of Water may be dissipated into the air. The excess water running down the inner surface of the concave rim 23 will be brought by the circular rilile 26 into intimate contact with the opposing high velocity circular stream of air discharged from the periphery of the disk Ill so as to set up a turbulent air Washing action that materially increases I the dissipation of the water into the air as well as the cleaning of the air. The excess water then flows over the rifile 24 and over the interior surface of the bowl-like housing 22 into the tank 2'3. Such excess flow of water likewise serves to wash the dirt and dust particles that are filtered from the air in its passage through the disk ill from the disk into the tank 21.

The combined room air circulating, temperature equalizing, air filtering, air washing, ,and humidifying functions produced by the horizontal spinner disk In in combination with the other ccoperating parts of the apparatus all serve to enhence the comfort and health of the occupants of the room and are obtained by means of the present invention with a relatively simple and smaller diameter than the rim 23 and is provided with a plurality of outwardly extending arms 58 that rest on the edge of the rim 23. The'lamp lead 59 is arranged to be plugged into the junction socket 60 so as to be energized from the same source as the driving motor l8. The cover 51 is provided with an enlarged central opening 62 for permitting the reentrant downward fiow of air to the upper side of the spinner disk It. An inner reflector hood 63 is provided to direct the germicidal rays from the lamp 55 towards the spinner disk Hi. In this way both the direct and reflected rays from the lamp II are concentrated upon the spinner disk l so as to amplify their destructive action on germs carried in the air, dust or dirt through the disk. This germicidal action may be added whenever desired.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent'of the United States, is:

1. An air conditioner having in combination an upwardly open housing having an annular upwardly sloping concave rim flaring outwardly at the top thereof to provide a circular water flow riflle below the top of said rim, a spinner disc formed of porous hygroscopic material for producing a centrifugal fiow of air therethrough to filter said air flow, means for spinning said disc with the periphery thereof overlying said riifle to project said centrifugal air flow against said rim and thereby bend said centrifugal air flow upwardly, and means for supplying a fiow of water centrally to said disc to wash and humidity said air flow through said disc and over said rim and counterfiow excess water over said riiiie into said housing.

2. An air conditioner having in combination a horizontal spinner disc formed of porous hygroscopic material for producing a centrifugal fiow 01' air therethrough to filter said air flow, an upwardly open housing having an annular upwardly sloping concave rim flaring outwardly at the top thereof concentric with said disc and disposed around the periphery of said disc to bend said centrifugal air flow upwardly and provide a circuiar water flow riflie below the edge oi said disc.

ing a flow of water centrally to the upper side of and means for supplying a fiow of water centrally to said disc to wash and humidify said air flow through said disc and over said rim and counter flow excess water over said rlffle into said hous- 3. An air conditioner having in combination a horizontal spinner disc formed of porous hygroscopic material for producing a centrifugal flow of air therethrough to filter said air flow, an upwardly open housing having an annular upwardly sloping concave rim fiaring outwardly at the top thereof and surrounding the periphery of said disc to bend said centrifugal air fiow upwardly and to provide a circular water flow rifile below the edge of said disc, means including a pair of clamping hubs on opposite sides of said disc for driving said disc, and means including a well formed in the upper one of said hubs for supplysaid spinner disc to wash and humidify said air fiow through said disc and over said rim and counterfiow excess water over said riflie into said housing.

4. A room air conditioning unit having in combination an upwardly open cylindrical water supply tank, an upwardly open bowl-like housing having a cylindrical bottom portion formed to telescope inside the top of said tank and having an annular upwardly sloping concave rim flaring outwardly at the top thereof to provide a circular water flow rillie below the top of said rim, a rotary pump mounted axially in said tank, an electric motor mounted coaxially in said housing and having a shaft operatively connected at the lower end with said pump and having the other end of said shaft extending upwardly concentric with said riille, a spinner disc formed of porous hygroscopic material for producing a centrifugal flow of air therethrough to filter said air fiow, means for mounting said disc on said upwardly extending end of said shaft with the periphery of said disc overlying said riflle to project said centrifugal flow of air against said rim to bend said air flow upwardly, and a water supply conduit extending from said pump outside and over said rim for supplying a flow of water centrally to the upper side of said disc to wash and humidify said air flow through said disc and over said rim and counterfiow excess water over said riille into said housing.

OSMUND HOLM-HANSEN. 

